Advertisement
Published: January 13th 2012
When we initially planned our trip we were left with two weeks in between the Drakensburg and the Serengeti. Zanzibar was a must and we had allotted it at least 5 days. Mozambique and Malawi were the two places left to decide between and for how long. Our initial hope was to try to do both for a few days but time and budget got the better of Malawi this time. That gave us one week to explore Mozambique. The highlight we had heard was snorkeling with whale sharks in a place called Tofo. In researching the highs and lows we found that Maputo was supposed to be a lovely capital city that added to the appeal of the country. Since we had a full week we thought we could take a couple of days to explore the capital.
We flew from Johannesburg to Maputo because of the requirement to have an entry permit before getting on a bus. The flight was very short but our overbooked first flight meant that we were stuck in Joburg for an extra day. South African airlines may suck at booking but they did a nice job of putting us up in a Vegas
style hotel complex and covering all our meals for the layover. The hotel was a nice but cheap knock off complete with statue of David, ceiling painted with clouds and European style street shops. It actually made for a relaxing day despite the stress and rage at the overbooking.
Trip adviser was our booking agent for our hotel in Maputo. In the past they have served us well. I don't think we spent enough time reading up on our chosen hotel. It turns out it wasn't actually in Maputo but in Catembe which is situated across the bay from Maputo. Adding to our travel experiences it meant we got to take a ferry to the hotel. In trying to figure out the ferry we had read numerous reports about how in November a couple of the ferries had sunk and blocked the channel, not confidence inspiring. Our chosen mode of transport for Mozambique was a rental car so that we could get a bit better feel for the country and see some of the countryside.
To keep this as brief as possible let me recommend that if you can avoid driving in Maputo and Mozambique in general you
are probably better off. The ferry was a cultural experience and one of Rachel's highlights for sure. The boats themselves as you can see are pretty derelict and would never pass any kind of North American emission test. They did get us there and the ferry guys were amazingly adept and packing the cars, trucks and buses in like sardines, filling the cracks with pedestrians, bicycles and motorcycles.
We stayed at the Catembe hotel which was rich in history but poor in air conditioning. I guess life is full of trade offs. The hotel had served as a hideout for a past president during a time of political persecution. Currently it was a bit of a run down but very well located hotel with a gorgeous restaurant/bar on a pier. Our room had a nice new air conditioner that did a good job of making noise and spitting out heat. That combined with a room the size of a shoe box and heat and humidity like we hadn't yet seen didn't make for much of a sleep. We had initially planned for two days there with one to explore Maputo. We should probably thank South African Air for screwing
up the booking so that we didn't have another day in the crazy, garbage covered capital that is Maputo.
Through a slight oversight, probably on my part, we had thought that Tofo, the whale shark locale and site of the greatest population of whale sharks in the world, was a short drive from Maputo. Turns out it's about 500km and in Mozambique where corruption of highway officials is a way of life, that takes a while. Our troubles started as soon as we got off the ferry with torrential rains and no real maps or directions or street signs. Once out of Maputo the stress continued with everyone we talked to warning us about the random stoppings, bribes and speed traps that are set up in little towns with poorly marked speed limit signs. Seven and a half hours, several bags of chips and a huge stress headache later we arrived at Casa Barry, our digs for the next 5 days.
Casa Barry came very well recommended from numerous people as “the” place to stay in Tofo. It sits at the south (I think) end of the main beach and is made up of a mix of large
self service cottages, some on the beach and numerous smaller en-suite huts set back from the beach. It has a nice big bar and restaurant overlooking the Indian ocean and is affiliated with a dive shop, Peri Peri Divers.
The hotel was great and aside from being very expensive we had no complaints. The staff are super helpful and went out of their way to accommodate us. The food was very good and they take credit cards which is a real rarity in Africa (outside of South Africa).
Our time in Tofo wasn't perhaps as productive as it could have been. On the first day I managed to get a hell of a sunburn and the weather wasn't cooperating. The whale shark safaris require relatively calm waters and decent sunlight to spot the giants lurking just under the water. Our arrival brought the rains from Maputo on up with us and they stayed on and off for the first couple of days. We took advantage of the time to explore Inhambane, a small fishing town 20km from Tofo and the nearest town with services. In searching for the central tourist market we stumbled upon a nice local market
and wandered aimlessly for some time with the locals staring and wondering why we were there. We enjoyed a meal in the rain down by the water and appreciated what must have once been a very nice coastal town that time has somewhat forgot. It reminded us a little of Iquitos in Peru, but not quite as big or nice. Inhambane does serve as the main airport for Tofo and if you are planning a trip there I suggest you use it instead of the driving option.
With our third day being too rough to go out we had a day to enjoy the beach. I had conflicting info on how long it is but 7km seemed to be the most common answer. The sand was clean and white and the beach was quiet despite it being school holidays. There is surfing and kite surfing for those interested and the surf fishing is supposed to be great. Our beach time was spent reading and journal writing with the occasional nap under a nice thatch umbrella.
The weather did improve and on our 4
th day we were able to get out for a trip. Whale sharks are a majestic
big fish. Entirely unafraid of people or boats they went about their graceful behaviour of feeding on the rich zooplankton while we watched. We were lucky to witness some vertical feeding where they just stay stationary and suck back the bounty of plankton. I think in all we saw 5 whale sharks with the biggest being about 7 metres long (22ish feet for the Imperial camp out there), and a single Manta ray. In sharp contrast to the graceful nature of the whale sharks was the rough and tumble boat ride. There was 4+ metre chop and I was battling some bad prawns from the night before. 4 of the 12 people on the boat were sick shortly after we got out to the sharks and Rach and I were fighting it the whole time. It was a tremendous experience to be several feet away from the worlds biggest fish. With the slightest flick of the tail they could be gone into the abyss and despite our best efforts there was nothing we could do to keep up (I tried, trust me). Unfortunately when we got back our stomachs weren't up for the afternoon shallow dive so we had to
cancel and plan for diving the next day. In a weird twist I also managed to inhale a sinus full of Indian ocean. Not really sure at first what was going on with the sloshing in my head, the raging sinusitis that developed helped to sort it out. I really don't have any idea how I managed it but having a sinus full of Indian ocean zooplankton is apparently not a good thing. Oh how I wish I had brought my Neti pot.
The diving in Tofo was very rich in fish life but the coral was a little dead. We are sure not the most experienced divers and for those of you used to the great barrier reef or the South Pacific I'm sure you would have a different impression. The visibility was average due to the mix of current and plankton making it a bit murky. There was a profound thermocline at about 6m and Rach ended up getting cold despite a 3mm wetsuit before our air ran out. I would recommend it for anyone in the area. Our highlights were numerous crocodile fish and reticulated morays. The bigger fauna, megafauna as they call it, hangs out
at the deeper depths. If you want to see the manta's and the sharks make sure you have your advanced open water.
Tofo was a very nice, quiet and very safe feeling little beach town. The deep sea fishing is supposed to be great with giant marlin a regular catch. The whale shark experience is something not to be missed by those of you that are into water sports. While you're there check out the diving and enjoy fresh, fresh seafood. We were bit by the diving bug and were hopeful that we could get in at least 4 dives while in Zanzibar. Unfortunately higher powers had other plans.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.086s; Tpl: 0.014s; cc: 12; qc: 31; dbt: 0.0407s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
mom mcphie
non-member comment
ups and downs
great pics as usual. fun to read Chuck's comments, gives a sense of the constant ups and downs of traveling. always good to see the pictures of you two. makes you seem closer to home. love you